A new set of leaked photos apparently shows the final, finished and working iPhone 6 handset. With less than a month until its anticipated, TMZ was able to grab shots of the upcoming device.
5S.

Per The Mac Observer, the photos landed in the hands of the tabloid site TMZ which said the iPhone in the shots was smuggled out of the Foxconn factory in China where it was assembled. The iPhone 6 in question was apparently snatched by an employee who used to work in Foxconn’s hardware department and was involved in designing the device’s outer case.

Apple hasn’t confirmed the new iPhone model yet. Rumors claim it will sport a 4.7-inch display instead of the 4-inch version found on the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C, and that a 5.5-inch model may be coming, too. The iPhone 6 is said to include an improved processor and cameras, longer battery life, and a redesigned body that more closely matches the iPad Air and iPad mini.

The photos seem to support the screen size and body redesign rumors, show the volume buttons on the opposite side of the device compared to previous models, and show the camera lens protruding from the phone’s back just like the current iPod touch models.

Apple is expected to hold a special media event on September 9th to introduce the new iPhone models with pre-orders beginning September 12th and the handset hitting store shelves on September 19th.

I think I need to call a small foul here, which is how this smells. This may well be a next-generation iPhone (whatever it is they’re going to be called, and whichever size this is), and it actually looks like a non-doctored photo. BUT the former Foxconn employee “was involved in designing the device’s outer case?” I don’t think so. Apple does 100% of its design work in Cupertino, California and nothing leaves the design studios until they’re ready to produce the hardware. Maybe this was someone who designed a mockup of something that looked like an iPhone to test production facilities, but a real iPhone design? Unless the employee left Apple to work for Foxconn, I don’t think so.